Nail-extractor



(No Model.) v v G. J. OAPEWELL. NAIL EXTRAGTOR.

N0. 858,540. Patented Mar 1, 1887.

N4 PETERS, PhMu-Liihognphur. Washinglom D. C.

pail

Nrrnn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE J. GAPEWELL, OF CHESHIRE, CONNECTICUT.

NAI L-EXTRACTO R.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 358,540, dated March 1, 1887.

(No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE J. OAPEWELL, of Cheshire, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in NailEXtractors, of which the following is a full, clear,and exact description, whereby any one skilled in the art can make and use the same.

Myinvention relates to the class of devices that are provided with pointed jaws and a percussive device for entering the jaws into the material into which a nail has been driven, with the jaws lying on opposite sides of the nail, the handle of the device forming a lever for extracting the nail. In a large class of such prior nail-pullers the jaws are attached to the stock or handle in such a manner that in driving the jaws into any material, as wood, it is necessary to use a blow heavy enough to act upon and move the whole mass of the device, whereas it is the object of my improve ment to provide a nail-extractor of this general class that combines with a shank a movable hammer or percussive device permanently connected thereto, and jaws that alone sustain or take the force of the blow in driving them.

To this end my invention consists in a stock or holder having a movable hammer or per cussive device connected thereto and jaws that are so attached to the stock or handle as to be movable longitudinally in the direction of the blow, and also adapted to close toward each other at theirpoints, in combination with a clamping device that serves also as a fulcrum, and in details of these several parts and their combinations, as more particularly hereinafter dcscribed,and pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the drawings, Figure l is an edge view of one form of my improved nailextractor. Fig. 2 is a side view of the same, with the side of the stock or handle broken. away to show construction. Fig. 3 is a detail view in cross-section of the extractor through the jaws and jawsocket on plane denoted by line XX of Fig. 2.

In the accompanying drawings, the letter a denotes a stock or handle; I), a movable hammer or percussive device attached to the stock; 0 and d, the nail-grasping jaws, and e a jawclosing lever. In the form shown the stock: a is a flat tube flaring outward and thickened at the top a, and having in the lower end a cross-wire socket, a in which the jaws 0 d are supported. The hammer consists of a flat bar of metal that fits within the tube and slides readily lengthwise in it, and which has on the outer end a handle, I), suitably shaped to afford a secure grasp and to add the necessary weight to the handle to give impetus to the blow. The lower end of the handle I) is provided with astop, b, that by contact with the top a of the stock limits the downward movement of the hammer in time to prevent the force of the blow from driving the jaws onto the pins that support them. There is a notch, b formed in one edge of thehammer, near its lower end, and within the socket in the stock, and a dog or spring latch,'f, secured in a socket, 9, near the upper end of the stock, and it is so secured in the socket that its end will be forced by the spiral sp ring f into the socket b intime to prevent the complete withdrawal of the hammer from the socket in the stock. The outer end of this spring-latch projects, so that the latch can be withdrawn and the hammer removed when desirable. A projecting loop, h, back of the socket, affords means for hanging the extractor on a nail or hook out of the Way when not in use.

The jaw c is made, preferably, of a piece of fiat toolsteel cut from a bar of merchantable size, and it is held in the jaw-socket a" by means of a pin, 0 that passes through the stock and through a slot, 0, in the jaw. This jaw is supported on its back edgeagainst the face of the wall a which face is formed at an angle with the stock, as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings. The other jaw, d, is formed of like material, and is practically a duplicate of the jaw c, the projecting ends (1 and c of the jaws being formed into claw shape, to adapt them to readily grasp the head of a nail. This jaw dis supported on a pin, d", that passes through the stock and through the slot d in the jaw d. The V-shaped spring t lies between the jaws, with outturned ends that take into notches cut opposite each other in the adjacent edges of the jaws. The back of the jaw (Z is supported by and slides on the inner face of the wall (1* of the jaw-socket, this inner face being practically parallel to 'the inner face of the opposite wall, c

The lever c is pivoted in a vertical socket,

e, in the lower end of the stock, and has an outward-extending arm, a and a shorter arm, c, with a rounding surface that in the swinging movement of the lever strikes against the outer edge of the jaw d. Thislever, in its normal position, projects at substantially a right angle from the stock, and is held against downward movement by the end of the arm 6 striking the lower face, a", of the wall at The operation of my improved nail extractor is as follows: The stock is grasped in one hand and the points of the jaws, that are 7 held apart by the spring t, are placed on opposite sides of the head of a nail that is to be drawn. WVhen the point of the jaws rest on the material into which a nail is driven, the weight of the stock and handle slides the jaws into the socket and lifts the lower end of the handle I) of the hammer clear of the upper end of the stock. By giving a downward blow with this hammer its lower end strikes againstthejaws and drives them easily into the wood, and the blow need not be a very heavy one, for the reason that only so much force is required as will drive the jaws into the wood. The whole force of the blow is applied directly to the jaws, and drives them quickly and easily without the shock upon the stock that in old forms of nail-extractors requires the latter to be very heavy and strong, and even then is apt to break them. The angular position of the jaws in relation to the axis of the stock and direction of movement of the hammer is also of advantage, not only in cansing the point of the jaw c to enter close to and well under the head of the nail, but as soon as the extractor is rocked over toward the lever in the manner common to such devices, the pull upon the nail then comes more directly upward in a direction lengthwise of the nail. and thus enables it to be more read ily pulled out. By the rocking movement of the handle and stock toward the lever e the arm 6 is pressed upon the surface of the material at some distance from the nail, and the short arm 6 of the lever is forced against the back ofthe jaw d, swingingittoward the jaw is and causing the jawsto close together and firmly grasp the nail.

An important feature of my improvement consists in the sliding jaws attached to the stock and alone driven by the direct impact of the hammer; and, further, advantage consists in placing the jaws at an angle lengthwisewith the axis of the stock or line of movement of the hammer; and a further improve ment consists in the combination of such sliding jaws with the lever whose short arm slides directly in contact with the back of one of the jaws, and it is not essential to the successful practice of my invention that these features of improvement should be embodied in the precise manner and form of device above described for their successful operation, and I do not limit myself to this construction simply.

I claim as my invention- 1. In a nail-extractor, the combination of a stock and movable hammer attached thereto, and sliding jaws that alone receive the direct impact of the hammer, and a jaw-closing device, all substantially as described.

2. In a nail-extractor, in combination with a stock and movable hammer attached thereto, lengthwise-sliding jaws that receive directly the impact of the hammer, and a jawclosing lever, e, pivotedto the stock and having a cam-faced short arm in contact with the back of one of thejaws and a projecting arm that forms the fulcrum in extracting a nail, all substantially as described.

3. In combination with the stock at, having ajaw-socket, a and sliding hammer b, with handle I), and a lower end normally in contact with the upper ends of the jaws, the slidings jaws c d, secured in the jaw-socket, and the jaw-closing lever c, all substantially as described.

4. In a nail-extractor, a supporting-stock and movablehammer attached thereto and sliding jaws located and moving at an angle with the axis of the stock, all substantially as described.

5. In combination with a stock, a,.having a jaw-socket, a, and sliding hammer b, with handle I), and stop If, and notch b and springlatch f, seated in a socket in the handle, the sliding jaws c d, with respective slots (1 the pins 0 and (1 the V-shapcd spring 1', with outturned ends taking into notches in the adjacent faces of the jaws, and the lever c, with arms 0 and 6 all substantially as de scribed.

6. In a nail-extractor, in combination with a stock, a, and movable handle I), attached thereto, the lengthwise-moving jaws normally in contact with the end of the hammer, and thejaw-closing lever c, with arm 0 and camfaced arm a, the latter by contact with the face of the wall a forming a stop that limits the rotary movement of the lever, all substantially as described.

7. In a nail-extractor, the stock a, having a loop, 71, jaw-socket a", with walls a a, with inner faces at an angle with the axis of the stock, the sliding hammer b, with handle b and stop I)", the sliding jaws c d, with slots through which retaining-pins pass, the length of the hammer beyond the stop I) being such that the stop II will come in contact with the end a of the stock before the pins 0 d reach the end of the slots 0 d, and the lever c, with arms 6 and c, the latter by contact with the wall a" forming a stop to limit the rotary movement of the lever, all substantially as de scribed.

GEORGE J. 'OAPEWELL.

Witnesses:

CHAS. L. BUR-DETT, A. B. JENKINS. 

